# Koha Software Pricing, Alternatives & More 2026 | Capterra > With the help of Capterra, learn about Koha Software - reviews, pricing plans, popular comparisons to other Library Automation products and more. Source: https://www.capterra.com/p/153941/Koha/pricing --- # Koha Software Review 2026: Features, Integrations, Pros & Cons Last updated on August 24, 2025 Provider data verified by our Software Research team, and reviews moderated by our Reviews Verification team. [Description](#description)[Use cases](#use-cases)[Alternatives](#alternatives)[Features](#features)[Pricing](#pricing)[Support](#support)[Reviews](#reviews) Koha ## What is Koha? Koha is the first free software library automation package. In use worldwide, its development is steered by a growing community of users collaborating to achieve their technology goals. Kohais a Full-featured ILS in use worldwide in libraries of all sizes, Koha is a true enterprise-class ILS with comprehensive functionality including basic and advanced options. Koha includes modules for acquisitions, circulation, cataloging, serials, authorities, flexible reporting, label printing and much more. ## What is Koha used for? [Library Automation](https://www.capterra.com/library-automation-software/) Overall rating Based on 11 user reviews Reviews sentiment Positive \- Neutral \- Negative \- Contact vendor for pricing Free trial not available Capterra Shortlist charts the highest-rated and most popular products... Our "Best of" badge program showcases products with the highest ratings... Our "Best of" badge program showcases products with the highest ratings... Do you work for Koha?[Manage this product listing](https://digitalmarkets.gartner.com/get-listed/claim-bx?url=http://www.bywatersolutions.com/&name=Koha) ## Compare with a popular alternative Capterra selects software alternatives based on relevant features, verified user reviews and user interactions. Placement may be influenced by client status. ### Koha 4.3 (11) VS. [4.8 (128)](https://www.capterra.com/p/10010536/Surpass/reviews/) Starting Price Contact vendor Starting Price $55 Flat Rate, Per Month Free Trial Free Version Pricing Options Free Trial Free Version Ease Of Use 4.0 (11) Ease Of Use 4.7 (128) Value For Money 4.3 (9) Value For Money 4.8 (87) Customer Service 4.6 (9) Customer Service 4.9 (126) ## Koha alternatives [4.7 (60)](https://www.capterra.com/p/29128/Mandarin/reviews/) Starting price $500.00 Per User, Per Month Pricing Options Free Trial Free Version User Rating 97% of reviewers rated it above 4 stars [4.8 (10)](https://www.capterra.com/p/157700/Lucidea-Integrated-Library-Systems/reviews/) Starting price $2500.00 Per User, Per Month Pricing Options Free Trial Free Version User Rating 100% of reviewers rated it above 4 stars [4.8 (24)](https://www.capterra.com/p/27788/Alexandria/reviews/) Starting price $499.00 Per User, Per Month Pricing Options Free Trial Free Version User Rating 96% of reviewers rated it above 4 stars [Simple Little Library System](https://www.capterra.com/p/189633/Simple-Little-Library-System/) [4.7 (29)](https://www.capterra.com/p/189633/Simple-Little-Library-System/reviews/) Starting price $37.00 Per User, Per Month Pricing Options Free Trial Free Version User Rating 97% of reviewers rated it above 4 stars [Learn More](https://www.capterra.com/p/189633/Simple-Little-Library-System/) [View all alternatives](https://www.capterra.com/p/153941/Koha/alternatives/) ## Features Features with the highest number of reviews are displayed first. Those that have no reviews appear next, sorted alphabetically. Barcoding/RFID 2.0 (1) 0.00% of 1 reviewers that rated this feature as important or highly important Identify and track items using barcode tags or RFID (radio-frequency identification) tags Catalog Management 2.0 (1) 0.00% of 1 reviewers that rated this feature as important or highly important Create and manage digital catalog of products/services with their details, specifications, and price Inventory Management 2.0 (1) 0.00% of 1 reviewers that rated this feature as important or highly important Track and manage inventory levels to maintain proper supply Search/Filter 2.0 (1) 0.00% of 1 reviewers that rated this feature as important or highly important Search and filter data across systems to locate required information by entering keywords or certain criteria Self Check-In/Check-Out 2.0 (1) 0.00% of 1 reviewers that rated this feature as important or highly important Check-in and out via a mobile device or kiosk Acquisition Management Manage asset purchase and monitor associated expenditures. Koha 18 features Manage asset purchase and monitor associated expenditures. Identify and track items using barcode tags or RFID (radio-frequency identification) tags Create and manage digital catalog of products/services with their details, specifications, and price Caters to library management needs specific to churches Overseeing distribution of published materials, such as books, newspapers, magazines, etc. Automatically collect recurring fees or dues from members Track and manage inventory levels to maintain proper supply Caters to library management needs specific to law Manage Online Public Access Catalog information, such as title, keywords, subjects, and authors. Manage library patron registration and accounts Manage acquisition and allocation of periodicals. Caters to library management needs specific to private libraries Caters to library management needs specific to public libraries Manage allocation of and track books reserved for specific needs or people. Caters to library management needs specific to school libraries Search and filter data across systems to locate required information by entering keywords or certain criteria Check-in and out via a mobile device or kiosk Manage acquisition and allocation of serials. Features 4.1 (11) 4.1 Based on 11 reviews ## Pricing Value for money 4.3 (9) ### Starting price Contact vendor for pricing Free trial available Value for money 4.3 (9) 4.3 Based on 9 reviews ## Support, customer service and training options Customer Service 4.6 (9) Support - Email/Help Desk - FAQs/Forum - Knowledge Base - Phone Support - 24/7 (Live rep) - Chat Training - In Person - Live Online - Webinars - Documentation - Videos Deployment - Web - Android - iPhone/iPad Typical users - Freelancers - Small businesses - Mid size businesses - Enterprises Customer Service 4.6 (9) 4.6 Based on 9 reviews ## User reviews Overall rating 4.3 Based on 11 reviews Filter by rating 5(5) 4(4) 3(2) 2(0) 1(0) Mentioned topic Sorted by most recent MD Miranda d. Coordinator of Reference and Access Services Libraries ### "I am Not a fan" 3.0 Overall Rating 3.0 3.0 Ease of Use 2.0 2.0 Features 2.0 2.0 Customer Service 5.0 5.0 Likelihood to Recommend 0/10 June 20, 2024 The system is not keeping up with cataloging. I catalog a book and then search for it in system, and it is not there. Pros The people. The customer service is great. Cons The product itself is not great. I am having trouble with the system keeping up with my cataloging. Switched from [Liberty](https://www.capterra.com/p/10010654/Liberty/) Price. We switched to a cheaper product. Review source Non-incentivized review: any software user can leave a review for any product listed on our site. All submitted reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. Matambo J. Librarian Information Services ### "KOHA: AN ONLINE CATALOGUE" 5.0 Overall Rating 5.0 5.0 Ease of Use 4.0 4.0 Features 5.0 5.0 Customer Service 5.0 5.0 Likelihood to Recommend 5/10 April 14, 2021 In combination of Dspace, patrons are able to access and use digitised information resources online. This makes things easy for both librarian and patron Pros KOHA is a typically an online software. It works well with many web based applications. With the help of proxy server contents of a particular library can be accessed remotely. Cons Deployment of KOHA involves too technical ICT expertise. One basically needs the support of an ICT technician to install the software. Review source Non-incentivized review: any software user can leave a review for any product listed on our site. All submitted reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. AP Aaron P. Owner Information Technology and Services ### "Extremely powerful software to host a Library, but difficult to use" 4.0 Overall Rating 4.0 4.0 Ease of Use 2.0 2.0 Features 5.0 5.0 Customer Service 3.0 3.0 Likelihood to Recommend 7/10 March 31, 2021 Once I learned the ins and outs and various quirks of Koha, I like it, and think it is a very powerful and valuable piece of software for libraries. The fact that it is free is a huge plus, as most libraries are non-profit and don't have a huge budget, let alone an IT budget. ByWater solutions, that supports Koha, is fairly responsive, but not always the most helpful. Pros Koha is extremely flexible and powerful, allowing you to effectively setup a full features Library website without having to purchase any expensive software. The Koha server supports a robust catalog search feature, powerful user management, relatively easy way to scan in new books, and even the ability to print out barcodes for said books. And with a bit of work, you can customize Koha to display a nice web portal. There is also a robust support community to help you out, something you will most likely need. Cons By far the biggest con is simply how difficult Koha is to use. While the initial setup isn't too difficult, anything beyond that can be extremely complicated. The Koha backend is extremely dense and non-intuitive. While there is a search feature to find different settings, the settings themselves are labeled in an opaque manner, making it difficult to know what you are searching for. Furthermore, any kind of editing you would like to on the web portal must be done using CSS, there is absolutely no WYSIWYG editor of any kind. Review source Incentivized review: software users are invited to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive for their time and effort. All incentivized reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. RE Rachel E. Children's Librarian Libraries ### "Good for what it is, wish it was streamlined" 4.0 Overall Rating 4.0 4.0 Ease of Use 3.0 3.0 Features 3.0 3.0 Customer Service 0.0 0.0 Likelihood to Recommend 7/10 September 4, 2020 Easy to learn, easy to use but you get what you (don't) pay for so to speak. Pros It's open source so that is a big selling point. It's easy to fiddle with and shift and change things. As someone who is new to library software, it's easy onboarding and easy to figure out without a complicated tutorial. Cons The search functionality is an issue for our patrons. Often you can search the exact book title and not get the book. The tags can be hit or miss. We have glitches that we're often dealing with and never really get solved so it sometimes just looks unprofessional. The process to upload images seems overly complicated, having to copy and paste MARC instead of just having the upload process embedded into the record. The UX could be improved and streamlined in several areas to reduce clicks or make it easy to alter multiple entries at once instead of one by one. Review source Incentivized review: software users are invited to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive for their time and effort. All incentivized reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. AU Anonymous User Behavior Therapist Mental Health Care ### "unorganized but simple software" 3.0 Overall Rating 3.0 3.0 Ease of Use 5.0 5.0 Features 3.0 3.0 Customer Service 5.0 5.0 Likelihood to Recommend 9/10 November 25, 2019 Pros Our colleges use Koha for library use and we are able to logon at any campus and see which books are offered at which campus. Cons The design of the software looks messy and unorganized but is basic and simplistic in nature. Review source Incentivized review: software users are invited to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive for their time and effort. All incentivized reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. LC Lisa C. Library Assistant 1 Libraries ### "KOHA has too many glitches. " 4.0 Overall Rating 4.0 4.0 Ease of Use 5.0 5.0 Features 3.0 3.0 Customer Service 3.0 3.0 Likelihood to Recommend 4/10 June 29, 2019 We're a library, so we're non-profit, but it's better than doing it all longhand. Pros It's easy to use. I work at a small, rural library, and this system works well for simple check-out and check-in. Cons It has too many glitches. It seems to randomly assign people credits, and sometimes causes items to be due the same day it is checked out. Review source Incentivized review: software users are invited to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive for their time and effort. All incentivized reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. Mercy C. Assistant To The Director Libraries ### "Koha has it all for Library Management" 5.0 Overall Rating 5.0 5.0 Ease of Use 5.0 5.0 Features 5.0 5.0 Customer Service 0.0 0.0 Likelihood to Recommend 10/10 October 11, 2018 Pros The fact that it is a first free automated library software, I am entitled to receive a customer care support 24/7. By being automated, it is easy for students to individually check-in and check-out. This software has got a version that can be installed in Android devices as well as iOS devices to serve the students in case of book search and tracking which in turn reduces overcrowding at computer checkpoints in the library. Just not to forget, the customization options of OPAC is more than excellent. Cons If only there was an option of deleting lenders in batch, I would really appreciate but the software is superb. Review source Incentivized review: software users are invited to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive for their time and effort. All incentivized reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. Maria Nelly G. Profesional Administrativo ### "Excellent system for the management of libraries practical and safe." 5.0 Overall Rating 5.0 5.0 Ease of Use 5.0 5.0 Features 4.0 4.0 Customer Service 5.0 5.0 Likelihood to Recommend 9/10 March 23, 2018 Pros What I like the most is that you can get listings of publications by subject as well as authors and that allows you to make a large number of reports. Cons Its installation, configuration are a bit cumbersome since it is difficult to identify the different ways of acquiring material everything recognizes as acquisition. Review source Incentivized review: software users are invited to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive for their time and effort. All incentivized reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. RS Rachel S. Director of Libraries ### "The Society of the Four Arts King Library" 4.0 Overall Rating 4.0 4.0 Ease of Use 4.0 4.0 Features 5.0 5.0 Customer Service 5.0 5.0 Likelihood to Recommend 10/10 August 24, 2016 Our original software was proprietary and inflexible. Koha has the flexibility we were looking for and is open source for ease of future innovations. ByWater Solutions helped us to migrate and get set-up; their staff was responsive and experienced. Pros The Open Source quality; it's flexible and adapts to all our needs. We own the software and can suggest changes. The user group is very informative, especially with solving known issues. Cons N/A Review source Non-incentivized review: any software user can leave a review for any product listed on our site. All submitted reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication. FB Felicia B. Information Librarian Education Management ### "Very Positive Move for our Library" 5.0 Overall Rating 5.0 5.0 Ease of Use 4.0 4.0 Features 5.0 5.0 Customer Service 5.0 5.0 Likelihood to Recommend 9/10 August 11, 2016 Our library was a long-time customer of one of the larger, proprietary vendors. We were unhappy with the high annual cost of the system, the lack of adequate technical support and training, poor indexing, etc. We eventually made a financial system to move elsewhere. We chose Koha because of it is open source, provides us with better functionality than we had, at a fraction of the cost. (We are in a hosted solution.) Pros We love that Koha is web-based. I have joked that I could run circulation from my smartphone. We have also been very impressed with its overall ease of use. We also love the customization options of the OPAC. Cons It would be nice to be able to customize the cataloging frameworks more easily. We would also like an option to delete borrowers in batch. 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